A wide variety of carboxylic acid containing compositions are biologically active, and several short chain organic acids which are naturally occurring acids have previously been implicated in the treatment of various pathological conditions. For example, Nordman, U.S. Pat. No. 3,291,689, discloses the treatment of hepatic ammonia intoxication with a mixture of L-arginine and malic acid. U.S. Pat. No. 3,718,664 discloses the use of thioctic acid derivatives in the treatment of acidosis.
Sloan, U.S. Pat. No. 4,381,307, discloses soft tertiary amine ester derivatives that have biological effects, while U.S. Pat. No. 4,760,078 discloses a 1,2, dithiol-3-thione derivative that has an immunomodulating effect.
Rubenstein, U.S. Pat. No. 4,971,760, discloses the sterilization of blood, blood constituents, and transplant tissues with a disinfectant that includes lactic acid and sodium chlorite. Naphtholic acid derivatives were discovered to be useful in enhancing oxygen availability to mammalian tissue by Suh et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,015,663.
Hoffiler et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,043,357, disclose a virucidal agent that is predominantly comprised of ethanol and/or alcohol but which includes a minor amount of a short chain organic acid. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 5,093,140 discloses an aqueous bactericide that contains organic acids. This solution is used in the scalding or washing stages of meat dressing. Kross et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,100,652 disclose an oral disinfectant that contains organic acids. See also Comroe et al., The Lung, 1955 Yearbook of Medical Publications Inc., Chptr. 4; John West, Respiratory Physiology, The Williams & Wilkins Co., Chptr. 6; Hypoxia, Metabolic Acidosis and Circulation, ARTCF . . . Oxford; Arnold et al, "Excessive Intracellular Acidosis of Skeletal Muscle on Exercise in a Patient with a Post-Viral Exhaustion/Fatigue Syndrome" The Lancet: Jun. 23, 1984; Schweckendiek, W., "Heilung von Psoraiasis vulgaris", Med. SschS, 13:103-4, 1959; G. E. Abraham et al., "Rationale for the Use of Magnesium and Malic Acid", Journal of Nutritional Medicine, 3:49-49 (1992); Kuroda, Z. and Akano, M., "Antitumor and Anti-intoxication Activities of Fumaric Acid in Cultured Cells", Gann, 727:77-782 (1981); Chemical Abstracts 98945Y, 116, March 1992 "Antifungal Activity of Fumarates in Mice Infected with C. Albicans"; Bauer et al., "Clinishe Wochenschrift 1991 69(2), pp. 722-4; for further details of several pathological processes which are susceptible to treatment according to the present invention.
It has now been discovered that admixtures of specific short chain organic acids have broad therapeutic effects.